


Gavin Hates Connor (and he means it!)

by TheShriekingOsprey



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Connor (Detroit: Become Human) Feels Pain, Connor (Detroit: Become Human) Needs a Hug, Connor (Detroit: Become Human) Whump, Deviant Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gavin Reed Being Less of an Asshole, Gavin hates connor, Hurt Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Hurt Gavin Reed, Hurt/Comfort, OC for plot purposes only, Other, The answer may surprise Gavin, Torture, but does he really???, deviants feel pain
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-15 20:14:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29319978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheShriekingOsprey/pseuds/TheShriekingOsprey
Summary: How many times did Gavin have to say it before it got old? Gavin hated Connor. He hated him before the revolution. He hates him after the revolution.Gavin hated Connor before they got kidnapped. And he’d be damned if he hated Connor any less after they escaped.If they escaped, that is.-Aka, Gavin is kidnapped because of Connor. Their captor is a special brand of demented... and Connor is determined to take the fall. After all, Gavin is there through no fault of his own.
Relationships: Connor & Gavin Reed
Comments: 16
Kudos: 69





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Welcome to my second fic. Please be aware that this work will include some topics that could possibly be triggering. I’ll do my best to leave trigger warnings, and the tags will be updated as I go.
> 
> That being said, stay safe and happy reading!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gavin and Connor wake up. Neither of them are happy.
> 
> Tw: broken bone(s), blood

Hate was a strong word. It was a strong feeling too. And Gavin? He hated Connor.

The entire precinct was quite fond of the puppy-eyed heap of scrap metal. The one that looked so much like a scared kid sometimes. The one who put his life on the line for the stupidest of reasons, taking risks for anyone and everyone if it meant they’d be just a little more okay. The one who made Hank smile again, and brought Wilson back alive to see his kid.

Gavin hated him. He hated Connor. It was his silent mantra as Gavin tested the handcuffs locking him to the metal bar embedded in the wall, duitifully ignoring the harsh red glow of the android’s LED. The android who had taken another stupid risk. The android who had ran back for him. The android who was strung up by his wrists, eyes closed.

“I hate him,” Gavin said under his breath, glaring up at the ceiling. His wrists were raw, aching. He yanked again. “Connor, you’re a dumb ass. F’kin’ bastard.”

Hank was going to kick his ass if he got out of this one.

When, he promised himself. Hank was going to kick his ass and probably cry a bunch. Over his dumb walking toaster.

Connor should have been awake by now.

Gavin scowled, and with nothing else to do, he yanked at his handcuffs again and again, biting out curse after curse as blood began to trickle down his arm, his dark sleeve growing sticky and warm.

It could have been hours or minutes later that the door opened. Gavin’s stomach dropped as he saw the person’s smiling face. No mask.

Gavin would not live to identify him, if all went according to his plan.

The man was short. Wiry. Pale, sickly skin stretched thin over exaggerated cheekbones, dark eyebrows set too high, with thin, cracked lips. His hair was a mess of dark, greasy brown, hanging in tangled waves past his chin. Shadows danced across his features as he tilted his head, hair swinging.

“Well,” he said after a period of silence. “Nice to see you awake, Detective Reed.”

Gavin clenched his jaw, looked away. His eyes found Connor. Traced the android’s peaceful expression. Red LED.

The man took a slow, measured step forward- heel first, then toe to the floor. Boots caked with mud, some pieces of dead foliage. He shut the door with a quiet  click.  “I have to say, it was a brilliant coincidence for you to have been so well acquainted with RK800, here. I was expecting more of a fight to keep up a ruse, to track him down...”

_ “What model are you?”_

_ “I’m an RK800.” _

Gavin bit back a scoff. Let him run his mouth, let him monologue. 

“You know,” he said, taking those same deliberate steps towards Connor. “If you weren’t there, I could’ve gotten away with this. No one would look for  _ this _ piece of plastic, but... you just had to be there, didn’t you?” Connor’s LED spun once.

Son of a bitch. That fucker-

“Well, I can’t say it’s your fault. I was the one who panicked, after all. But since I’m doomed to be caught...” He waved a hand, allowing the silence to stretch for a moment, dramatically measured in his words. “It appears as though I’ll have to make the most of my time with you.”

The man took another step towards Connor, reaching out- not touching, just hovering a hand by his face. “It really was the perfect opportunity, androids.” He breathed out a laugh. “So...  _human_.  So childlike, when you take the time to break them. You can see it, you know. When the deviancy hits. They snap! All of that fear floods their eyes... and the noises they make as they discover  _pain_...” He hummed. “So  _ delightful_.

“And no one looks for them when they’re gone. All of the intricacies of a human with twice the endurance. The perfect dolls.”

The man made to touch Connor’s face again, then paused, turning his hand over to stroke the synthetic skin with the backs of his fingers.

Gavin wanted to gag. He bit his tongue hard enough to taste blood. It was no surprise that this guy was crazy. When someone was willing to kidnap a human being it was a given. But all of- all of that? He was a serial killer.

Gavin had been abducted by a serial killer because of Connor.

Need Gavin remind himself how much he hated that tincan?

The man circled Connor, head tilted as he admired the android. A soft smile played at his lips, expression one of gentle fondness. Curiosity. He murmured things too quiet for Gavin to hear and reached out, grabbing Connor’s hand. Long, pale fingers skimmed down the back of his hand, tracing thirium lines and freckles. Stroking the backs of fingers.

He didn’t look back as he raised his voice. “You see, deviants feel  _ so much.  _ Androids? Meh, their whole spiel about errors and repairs get old. But the discovery of pain?”

His fingers had come to a standstill wrapped lovingly around Connor’s thumb. His other hand came up to cradle Connor’s wrist, supportive.

_ “Never.” _

He bent. The digit snapped.

The noise Connor made was inhuman. A strangled, static-laced scream bubbling up against his will. His face twisted and he jolted as he instinctively tried to pull away, finding no purchase. 

“Leave him alone!” Gavin snarled, fists clenched. His wrists screamed at him as he yanked without conscious thought.

The man threw his head back and laughed, delighted. “Oh! So you  _ do  _ care! I was beginning to worry there, for a moment.”

Gavin clenched his jaw.

“Don’t worry, you won’t last as long, anyways. You’ll go first. Who knows? Maybe I’ll even be rid of you before the police find me.”

Fear turned his blood to sludge in his veins. “They’ll find you,” Gavin said. “They’ll find you, and when they do-“ He bit his tongue.

It wouldn’t matter what they did if Gavin was dead.

He hated Connor. Connor, who was still sucking in shallow breaths. Whose eyes were open now, staring past the madman. Who trembled so hard that he still swayed, his LED pulsing.

“Ah, yes. I’ll be arrested.” The man waved his hand to dismiss the thought. “Spend my life in jail, yada yada. Whatever. But  _ you  _ are here now. The perfect candidate.” He glanced back at Connor once, grinning, before taking a step in Gavin’s direction. “I think you’ll last a few days before I break you. Shock is really such an unfortunate thing. Lose blood? Dead. Too much pain? Dead. So...” Another step. Gavin flinched back. “I believe I have a soldering iron with your name on it. What-“

“Don’t.”

The man blinked. Incredulous dark eyes widened. His grin slowly, impossibly widened, turning from Gavin back to Connor. “What was that, dear?”

Gavin openly stared. What the fuck?

“Don’t,” Connor repeated, jaw set. “He’s too breakable. If you want to torture him, getting physical will kill him too fast.” A pause. Connor’s eyes darted over to Gavin, gaze stony. Stoic. Roiling emotions shoved away. He was a machine. “It’s safer and more efficient to elicit a response through emotional trauma. It allows for easier cleanup, as well. You could frame it as a suicide when you reach his limit.”

The man barked out a laugh. He made eye contact with Gavin. “You hear this, detective? He’s defending you!” He laughed again, a rich, resonating sound. Too loud in the small room. “That’s- that’s golden! A for effort, kiddo. In fact... you know what? I’ll bite. You be nice and quiet for me, and I’ll let boyfriend over there live another day, deal?”

“I’m not-“

The man ignored Gavin, leaning in closer to Connor. “Well?”

Connor avoided looking at his colleague. “Deal.”

The man snorted, clapping his hands once sharply. “Well!” he repeated. “This has taken quite a lovely turn! I think I quitelike where this is going.” He crossed over to the door, pausing in the doorway. “I’ll be back in a bit, boys, so do behave?” He was still grinning as he slammed the door behind himself.

Connor closed his eyes and took an unnecessary breath.

Gavin stared. He. Hated. Connor.

Hate may have been a strong word, but it was an even stronger emotion.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gavin and Connor are left alone together. Gavin doesn't care about his cellmate. Connor does.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter two! Let it be known that I don't have a beta reader, so if you catch any errors please let me know. Thank you all for commenting, kudos, or even just reading.
> 
> Tw: blood, brief mention of broken bone(s).

Connor and Gavin sat in the heavy silence left in wake of the psycho’s exit. With each moment that passed, the gravity of the situation seemed more and more pressing, settling over the room with a weight that Gavin would never be ready to shoulder. Eyeing Connor’s solid red LED, he doubted the android was faring any better.

He forced his breaths to stay deep and even, sitting back and trying to distance himself from the cold discomfort. He closed his eyes.  _ Deep breath in… _

The memories played unbidden. Prickling jealousy, watching Connor at the station through narrowed eyes. Coils of anxiety tightening around his lungs, talks of assigned cases and android prowess, programmed to perfection. Humans had to work, to  _ earn  _ their skills and positions. Androids just…  _ were. _

It all made Gavin’s blood boil. Even now, even though Connor was deviant. He wasn’t human. Maybe he was alive. Maybe he did feel emotions and pain and love and all that shit. But he didn’t have to go through all of it, he didn’t experience ‘growing up’. He was created without all of the trauma and ups and downs and bullshit that made him who he was. He just  _ was.  _ Androids just  _ were.  _ So why should Gavin worry about what that psycho might put him through? In the end he’d be fine. He’d just be making up for lost time. Maybe he’d wipe that smug expression off his face for good.

Another memory, unprovoked.

_ “Connor!” _

_ It was the tone that had Gavin’s gaze snapping up, scanning for a threat. And then the word and voice registered and his shoulders dropped, irritation washing over him. Hank and that damn android. Jesus fucking Christ. _

_ Hank had gotten up to round the desks, snapping loudly to get his partner’s attention. The android in question was staring wide-eyed at his hand, palm up, fingers loosely curled. His LED cycled quickly from red back to yellow but continued to spin. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, looking every bit like a fish out of water. _

_ “C’mon, kid. Talk to me. What happened?” _

_ Tch. Kid? He was a piece of plastic designed to look like he was thirty. _

_ “I…” Connor slowly uncurled his fingers, brow furrowing. “I appear to have sustained minor damage to my synthetic skin.” _

_ “In English?” _

_ Oh come on, even Gavin understood what he meant. Mostly. _

_ “It’s… a…” Gavin could’ve sworn his cheeks were turning blue. “It’s nothing. Just caught me off guard, that’s all.” _

_ “Connor,” Hank warned. _

_ “Fine. It’s a paper cut.” _

_ Hank burst into laughter, startling half the precinct as Gavin hid a smirk, much to Connor’s chagrin. _

_ “Lieutenant-” _

_ Hank held a hand up, struggling to regain composure. “Sorry,” he laughed. “Sorry, just… I thought you were malfunctioning or- I don’t fucking know- and it’s just a paper cut?” When Connor didn’t respond he quickly sobered, lowering his voice. Gavin found himself leaning closer, listening in. _

_ “You okay? You look… I dunno. Upset.” _

_ “It just startled me. It didn’t feel… pleasant.” _

_ Hank straightened up, smirking. “So it hurt.” _

_ “I suppose it did,” Connor said after a short pause. “I have no personal data to compare it to, but I believe it would be categorized as a minor pain.” _

_ Way to sound like a robot. _

_ But… Gavin felt a little less amused as a strange thought crossed his mind. He sat back in his chair, clicking his pen. _

_ To a young kid, every pain was the worst pain they’d ever felt because they had nothing else to compare it to. A scraped knee or a twisted ankle felt like the end of the world. _

_ “I have no personal data to compare it to,” he’d said in an even, steady voice, LED cycling yellow.  _

_ To Connor, a paper cut was the worst pain he’d ever felt. _

Gavin frowned and opened his eyes to stare up at the ceiling. Listened to the quiet sound of Connor’s breathing. Fake breathing. How long had it been since that paper cut? How much had Connor had time to experience?

Slowly, he lowered his gaze. First to the chains suspending Connor, then to his hands, his broken thumb… his red LED, his pinched expression, closed eyes. 

Gavin yanked again at his restraints, letting the pain drown out the sudden swell of emotion. He glared down at his wrists, watching new blood beading up through half-formed scabs, and yanked harder.

“Detective,” Connor said.

Gavin ignored him. Yanked a third time.

“Detective,” the android repeated. “I’d advise against-”

“Shut up.”  
Connor watched on in silence for several more attempts before trying again. “You really shouldn’t-”

“I said shut up!” Gavin snapped, practically throwing himself forward to emphasize his point. He sucked in a sharp breath at the pain, quickly slumping back in an attempt to take the pressure off the now searing wounds. “Fuckin’...” He didn’t know how to finish that sentence.

“Detective,” Connor said, voice wavering slightly. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah. Fine.”

Connor stared at him, deadpan.

“Jesus Christ, you’re worse than my mom.” There was no real heat behind the words as anxiety began to creep back in, smothering the fiery anger he tried so hard to stoke. He took a slow, shaky breath, closing his eyes. He could practically feel the android’s gaze, searing through him.

“Fowler will notice that you’re gone,” Connor said after another few minutes. His tone had dipped into that gross softness he used on victims. An attempt to be soothing. “People will be looking for you.”

Gavin didn’t acknowledge him.

“He panicked. His plan didn’t include you as a variable. The execution was poor at best. They’re bound to find you eventually.”

Gavin turned pointedly away.

“Detective Reed,” Connor insisted. “You’re going to be  _ fine.” _

And if Gavin’s form tensed up every time he heard “you” instead of “we”, neither of them acknowledged it. They were both detectives. Connor knew that Gavin noticed.

Gavin said nothing.


End file.
